The public debt of Russian regions increased by 18%

"By the end of 2020, the state debt of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation increased by 383 billion rubles, or by 18%, and reached 2,496 billion rubles. The size of the debt of municipalities has practically not changed, since the regions have assumed the main burden of anti-crisis measures”, - says First Deputy Finance Minister Leonid Gornin in an article for Rossiyskaya Gazeta.

The deputy head of the department noted that more than half of the increase in debt - 56% - is the same "practically free" budget loans received from the federal treasury. Debts to credit institutions, on the contrary, decreased - by 5.6 billion rubles.

As of January 1, 2021, the leverage ratio was 27.3%, which is lower than the maximum values that were demonstrated after the 2014 crisis. Gornin stressed that the debt burden of the Russian regions remains "at a safe level" corresponding to the end of 2012 indicator.

The budget deficit of the constituent entities of the Russian Federation at the end of last year amounted to 677 billion rubles. At the same time, 560 billion rubles fell on 16 regions with a high share of the fuel and energy complex in the structure of revenues and on Moscow, the Moscow region and St. Petersburg.

According to the Deputy Minister, 56% of the deficit was financed from the balances on the accounts of the subjects, 32% - from new loans.

Earlier it was clarified that two-thirds of Russian regions approached the beginning of 2021 with a budget deficit. At the same time, the most problematic situation with the state of the regional treasury has developed in the Kemerovo, Tyumen regions and Udmurtia. In total, 58 out of 85 Russian regions faced the problem of budget deficit.

It's worth reminding that analysts predicted an increase in national debt by the end of 2020, but predicted a smaller amount. For example, economist Mikhail Belyaev predicted that the national debt of Russian entities would grow by 300 billion rubles.